YARMOUTH, Maine —DeLorme, the leading digital mapping, software, and GPS provider, today announced the release of its Earthmate GPS LT-40, a next generation GPS for laptop PCs. The LT-40 features the STMicroelectronics Teseo chipset for superior signal acquisition, retention, and positional accuracy, even in challenging urban GPS environments.

This launch also debuts Street Atlas USA® 2009 DVD mapping software, for family and everyday use, and the more feature-rich Street Atlas USA 2009 PLUS DVD, aimed at business and advanced users. In addition to the U.S., each also covers Canada (street-level detail) and Mexico (main roads).

Breakthrough New Low Price Expands the Market

Both software titles, along with the LT-40, support the new generation of ultra-mobile personal computers (UMPCs). This is in keeping with DeLorme's commitment to supporting the latest hardware advances.

New NavMode Option

New with Earthmate GPS LT-40 is the NavMode option, a "cockpit view" featuring improved deployment of navigation information and user controls.

NavMode also delivers an optional 3-D perspective that displays a more horizontal look at the streets and roads ahead (built on DeLorme's renowned 3-D mapping engine).

ConstantLockSignal Retention

A primary strength of the LT-40 is its new high-sensitivity, Teseo-driven ConstantLock signal retention. Signals as weak as -159dBm are routinely acquired and maintained without sacrificing positional accuracy.

With STMicroelectronics' and DeLorme's groundbreaking Kalman filtering, the LT-40 maintains its fix even amid tall buildings, and in high radio frequency (RF) areas (e.g. close proximity to cell phone towers). The LT-40 is WAAS-enabled for accuracy within three meters, and has a redesigned RF front end. It uses STMicroelectronics' Galileo-ready STA5620 chipset based on advanced low power BiCMOS SiGe technology.

Preferred by Serious Users

While after-market GPS personal navigation devices (PNDs) have been growing rapidly in popularity, a sizeable segment of serious users still prefer the large-screen perspective and powerful mapping software that a laptop enables. "The LT-40 is a very practical GPS solution for anyone with a laptop PC," said Caleb Mason, Director of Marketing at DeLorme. "It offers advanced GPS capabilities at a very low cost—just $69.95 with Street Atlas USA® 2009 software included.

"Our research is telling us that many GPS power users who are already traveling with a laptop PC prefer the large screen for GPS navigation, because it displays so much more geographic area; they also want the ability to plan trips and utilize the full computing power of a laptop, compared to the more limited trip-planning capabilities that installed GPS systems and after-market PNDs can provide."

Broad Array of Planning and Navigation Features

Indeed, the LT-40 and included Street Atlas USA 2009 software deliver a broad array of high-end trip-planning and navigation features, including automatic road routing, over 4 million searchable places of interest, interactive voice technology, (spoken directions with street and road names and numbers, and responses to a user's spoken questions and commands), automatic back-on- track routing if detours or side trips take the user off course, and GPS radar to locate nearby restaurants, lodgings, and other places of interest while traveling.

In addition to the LT-40, DeLorme is also offering the Earthmate GPS LT-40 PLUS, which comes with Street Atlas USA 2009 PLUS DVD software.

Street Atlas USA and Street Atlas USA PLUS

With the 2009 release, both versions of Street Atlas USA include UMPC support, plus hundreds of thousands of added roads and updated road names. In addition, countless sports venues— professional, college, and NASCAR— have been added to the data.

The Street Atlas USA software products are what drive all the navigation, travel planning, routing, and GPS management capabilities available to LT-40 users. In addition to those touched on above, they include a wide variety of map customizing features and flexible print options.

Import Usable Aerial Imagery

Users can also access usable aerial imagery via the software's NetLink tab. Unlike what's available online, DeLorme imagery can be used for GPS tracking, and users can add Map Notes or other custom edits to the imagery—for example, to label landmarks. Users also have the option to overlay DeLorme road data.

Street Atlas USA 2009 PLUS Capabilities

Street Atlas USA PLUS DVD users will find all of the detail and capabilities available in the regular version; PLUS users also receive 150 million residential and business phone listings for the U.S. and Canada; and the ability to import and geo-locate data from programs such ACT!, Excel spreadsheets, and other programs. PLUS also enables large-format printing and the ability to embed links to photos, documents, and Web URLs in the map data.

The Earthmate GPS LT-40, Street Atlas USA 2009 DVD and Street Atlas USA 2009 PLUS DVD are all available at electronics stores throughout the U.S. and Canada. They can also be purchased direct from DeLorme at www.delorme.com, or by calling 800-561-5105. The Earthmate GPS LT-40 PLUS can be purchased at U.S. retailers, and direct from DeLorme.

About DeLorme

DeLorme offers a unique set of core competencies across the complex areas of map data creation and management, software development, and integration within GPS technologies. This ability to understand and develop all the critical components necessary to compete in the fast-changing world of GPS and digital mapping provides DeLorme with a unique competitive advantage. The company is one of a handful of mapmakers that still own and produce their own content. The longtime leader in map-based solutions for both consumer and professional markets, DeLorme is well-known for its GIS-based software applications including Street Atlas USA, Topo USA, and XMap Professional. Recent innovations include the Earthmate GPS PN-20 handheld receiver, the Earthmate GPS BT-20 with dual Bluetooth and USB connectivity, and the DeLorme GPS2058 Receiver Module for OEM electronic systems. Located in Yarmouth, Maine, DeLorme is home to Eartha™, the world's largest rotating globe.